Summary
A brutal and bloody homage to 80s actioners paired with an anime aesthetic. “Sucker of Souls” is a glorious 13 minutes of violence and machismo.
Love, Death + Robots is a Netflix Anthology series created by Tim Miller and David Fincher. Here is the review for Episode 5, “Sucker of Souls”, which will contain spoilers. You can read the spoiler-free review of the entire series by clicking these words. You can check out our archive for reviews of each episode by clicking these words.
A bloody mercenary and his scientist partner are on the run through a tunnel. Quick cuts and a thudding soundtrack tell us they are in danger. Behind them the lights start to go out one by one as the unseen assailant growls, catching them up. And then, darkness.
This short follows a team of mercenaries and scientific researchers as they investigate a series of underground tunnels. Along the way, they encounter Dracula, the mythical vampire who literally tears one of the scientists in two. Between them, they attempt to blow the vampire into tiny pieces using C4 explosives. Just as they think they are safe something stirs overhead…
“Sucker of Souls”, the fifth episode of Netflix’s new genre-bending anthology collection Love, Death + Robots, is dark, bloody and looks fantastic. The animation is anime style and a series of quick cuts give the whole thing a sense of urgency that plays nicely into the aesthetic.
There is a caustic sense of humor that runs through this like a stick of rock. When we learn that vampires are afraid of cats our mercenary hero quips, “he’s not the first guy to get in trouble for eating a little pussy.”
This is a fast-paced 13 minutes that will leave you breathless. If like me you hold a special place in your heart for 80s action movies like Predator or Commando this one is for you.
